Three Brooklyn nursing homes have been slapped with nearly $18,000 in fines for dangerous conditions that put patients' health in jeopardy, federal and state officials said.

The biggest fine went to Wartburg Nursing Home in East New York, where the Daily News reported that a huge layoff of staff last summer left residents complaining of inadequate care.

Federal officials ordered Wartburg to pay $10,400 last September, according to documents obtained under the Freedom of Information Act by the Long Term Care Community Coalition.

Inspectors found Wartburg was not "administered in a way that leads to the highest possible level of well-being for each resident."

That was in May - before the nursing home slashed its staff by more than 50. Residents said things have only gotten worse.

"They deserve it," said Wartburg patient Darrell Carolina, 39, who charged his food is usually cold by the time it gets to him, and that he has lost 19 pounds in recent months.

Another resident said overstretched workers left her stranded in the bathroom for 45 minutes, and that she's been given the wrong medication at least three times.

"Everybody suffers," she said. "The aides suffer and the patients suffer."

Norwegian Christian Home & Health Center in Dyker Heights was fined $3,575 in November, also for failing to keep the home free of dangers and ensure a high quality of life for residents.

Representatives for Wartburg and Norwegian Christian Home did not return calls for comment.

Richard Mollot of the Long Term Care Community Coalition said the fines do little to force nursing homes to clean up their act.

"Too often because the fines tend to be small, it's a slap on the wrist," he said. "A facility ... won't make any long-term changes to improve the quality of care because it's just part of doing business."

Spokesman Ole Pedersen said the fine stemmed from a "minor situation" in which a patient smoking a cigarette burned a piece of cloth, smoking up the room. "We did what we were supposed to do," he said, adding staffers reported the incident to the state.